Despite a dip in sales, Peabody Energy Corp. (NYSE:BTU) has reported an unexpected Q2 profit due mostly to an uptick in demand. The stock is up more than 3 percent in pre-market. Other coal plays, such as Arch Coal (NYSE:ACI), Alpha Natural Resources (NYSE:ANR), and Walter Energy (NYSE:WLT) are also up this morning.
Of course, some are still skeptical on coal. And that’s understandable. In fact, just last week we learned that the World Bank is set to severely restrict funding for new coal-fired power plants in developing countries.
Yes, this is a pretty big deal, although I don’t think it’s really going to do any major damage to the coal market. After all, there are still plenty of other coal-fired power plants that will have no problem getting funded, particularly in China and Poland.
Still, there’s definitely no doubt that the World Bank’s dismissal of coal (at least for loan guarantees) will boost the development of natural gas-fired power plants as well as solar, wind and hydro in developing nations. And of course, if you play it right, you can make a few bucks. Click here to read more.
